The Fixed Routes & Territories page of Descartes Route Planner On-demand is designed for customers who have a fixed customer base with similar routing scenarios from day to day or week to week. Users can configure which customers appear within the fixed routes and which ones do not. The fixed routes are based on the customers and not their orders. Once these fixed routes are created, customers are automatically allocated to routes and route positions from within the daily routing tool when applied. Customers that are not part of the fixed routes remain unassigned and can be inserted later as part of the dispatching process.

Loading a Fixed Route Group

Before any customers can be added to fixed routes, the routes need to be loaded into the Main Menu > Fixed Routes & Territories page. Fixed routes can also be imported and used as a starting point to then be modified within the Descartes Route Planner On-demand application.

If a fixed route group does not exist, one must first be created.

To upload and create a fixed route group:

From the main menu, go to Fixed Routes & Territories > Upload.
Click Choose File. A preview of the file is displayed.

3. Click Upload.

To create a fixed route group:

From the main menu, select Fixed Routes.
Click Create a new fixed route group.
Enter the Group Name and Description.
The Presentation Order field allows users to set a custom sorting order for displaying fixed route groups within the user interface, such as tables and dropdown lists. When the same presentation order is set for multiple groups, the sort will first look at the presentation order set value and then by name.
Select the Delivery Company to have the respective route template/vehicles/drivers configured for that Delivery Company available for the Fixed Route Group profile.
Click the Create button.

To load fixed routes:

From the main menu, select Fixed Routes & Terrirories. A list of active fixed route groups is displayed.
Click the icon for the fixed route group's respective entry to open.

Deleting a Fixed Route Group

To delete a fixed route group:

From the Fixed Routes & Territories page, check the box next to the group you want to delete.
Check the box to verify your information and click Delete. This action will mark the fixed route group as inactive in the instance you need to reactivate the group later on.

To reactivate a fixed route group:

From the Fixed Routes & Territories page, expand the Inactive fixed route groups section.
Check the box next to the group you want to reactivate.
Check the box to verify your information and click Undelete Fixedroute group.

Configuring Options

Options can be configured to control how the data is displayed or used within the Fixed Routes & Territories page. These options can be configured at three different levels:

Organization: Options configured at this level will be used for all locations and users within the organization.
Location: Options configured at this level will be used for all users within the location. The configuration settings may be different from one location to another within the organization.
User: Options configured at this level will be specific only to the user.

To configure Fixed Routes options, click Menu from the control bar.

The following table provides a high-level explanation of the available options that can be configured:

Option	Description
Display	It allows users to customize how routes, customers and depot types are displayed on the map based on certain criteria.
Columns	It allows users to configure what information is displayed in the Fixed Route and Customers panes.

Configuring General Display Options

The general display options allow the user to configure how the data will be displayed on the Fixed Routes page. For example, the user may always want to display the routes on the map so as not to show the route leg from the final stop back to the depot.

To configure general display options:

From Menu, click Display.
Click General. The image below shows the general display options that can be configured by a client_admin and/or dispatcher_admin user:

Enhanced Icon Display Usability and Drag-and-Drop

Starting in version 25.07, the Icon Display feature is enhanced by adding the following functionality:

Streamlined Filter Row: The filter row makes it easier to create, view, and modify multiple icon display rules in one place, with an instant preview of icon settings.
Attribute and Value Dropdowns: Improved dropdown logic simplifies attribute and value selection.
Drag-and-Drop Rule Ordering: You can now change the order of rules by clicking and holding the new drag handle (≡ icon) and moving rules up or down the list.
The new left-side identifier (drag handle) supports clear, easy drag-and-drop in both Filters and Icon/Depot Display.
Visual Indicators: When dragging, a grey rectangle marks the original position in the list for easy tracking.
Consistent Experience: These enhancements are available in Map View, Scheduling Board, and Fixed Routes.

Tip: For details on configuring Icon Display, see Configuring Icon Display in Map View.

Adding Customers

To add customers to the planning session:

Right-click anywhere within the Fixed Routes Planning map.
Select Add A Customer from the right-click menu.
Type partial or complete information into the Account # or Name fields.

Then, click Search to display a list of all matching customers in the Customer Search Results window.
Select the customer you want to add from the list and click the Add button.
Finally, click Close to go back to the map. All the customers that have been added will be listed in the Customers tab.

Additionally, the newly added customers will appear as blue teardrop icons on the map.

Adding Customers to Fixed Routes

Once the customers have been added to the planning session, they can be added to existing fixed routes.

To add a customer to an existing fixed route:

From the Fixed Routes tab, expand the route by clicking the > symbol next to the fixed route to which the customer will be added.
From the Customers tab, click the customer to add to the fixed route.
Using the mouse, drag and drop the customer to the stop on the fixed route before which the newly added customer will be placed.

To create a new fixed route:

Using the Ctrl key from the map, click on the customers to group onto a fixed route. Selected stops will change their color from blue to pink.
The selected customers will also be highlighted on the Customers tab. Right-click on one of the highlighted customers on the map and click Create Route.
Select a Route Template from the dropdown list and click Create route.

Adding Service Time to Customer Stops

Now that the customers have been added as stops on the fixed route, the user can add service times to the customer stops if applicable.

To add service time to a customer stop:

Right-click on the stop from the Fixed Routes tab or on a stop from the map.
Select Add Service Time.
Enter the service time (in minutes) and click Save.

Service time can also be added to the upload file when a fixed route is imported into the application.

To view the service time for customer stops:

Go to Menu > Columns > Stops Table.
Drag the Service Time field from the Available Columns and drop to the Current Columns.
Click the Save button.

Editing the Order Type for Customer Stops

Since fixed routes are created based on customer stops and typically applied to uploaded orders, fixed routes can be utilized to create both routes with customer stops and orders. Utilizing the fixed routes create orders from fixed routes function that can be used and have an order type associated with it. Available order types are:

Delivery: Order picked up at a depot and delivered to a customer
Pickup: Order picked up at a customer and delivered to a depot
Exchange: Order where the exact product is swapped, both given and received from a customer
Service: Order indicating that some type of a service is to be performed at a location
DirectPickup: Order where only the pickup location is defined
DirectDelivery: Order where only the delivery location is defined

To edit the order type for a customer stop:

Right-click on a stop on a fixed route from the Map or Fixed Routes panes.
Select Edit Order Type.
Select the Order Type from the dropdown list.
Click the Edit Order Type button.

Adding a Depot Stop to a Fixed Route

After the fixed route is created, a depot stop may need to be added.

To add a depot stop to a fixed route:

Right-click on a stop on a fixed route from either the Map pane or Fixed Routes pane where the depot stop needs to be added.
Select Add Depot.
Select the desired depot from the dropdown list.
Click the Add Depot button.

Adding a Break Stop to a Fixed Route

After the fixed route is created, a break stop may need to be added.

To add a break stop to a fixed route:

Right-click on a customer stop on a fixed route from either the Map pane or Fixed Routes pane where the break stop needs to be added.
Select Add Break Stop.
Select the "Break" Stop Type from the dropdown.
Confirm the value shown in the Route Position field, or select the desired position from the available dropdown list.
Enter the stop's Service Time in minutes.
Click the Add Break Stop button.

Assigning Vehicles and Drivers to Fixed Routes

Now that the fixed route has been created, a vehicle and driver can be assigned to the route.

To assign a vehicle to a fixed route:

From the Fixed Routes tab, right-click on the route with an “unknown” vehicle assigned.
From the right-click menu, select Edit Routes > Change Vehicle.
Select a green-colored (available) vehicle name from the dropdown list.
If a driver is assigned to the vehicle and needs to remain with the new vehicle, enable the "Keep Assigned Driver" checkbox.
Click the Change Vehicle button.

To assign a driver to the fixed route:

From the Fixed Route tab, right-click on the desired route.
From the right-click menu, select Edit Routes > Change Driver.
Select a green-colored (available) driver's name from the dropdown list.
Click the Change Driver button.

Editing the Planned Launch Time

The planned launch time is assigned when a route template is selected for a fixed route. In some scenarios, the planned launch time may need to be changed for a fixed route.

To edit the planned launch time:

Right-click on the desired route on the Fixed Route tab.
From the right-click menu, select Edit Routes > Edit Planned Launch Time.
Change the launch time.
Click Save.

Changing the Starting and Ending Depot

When a route template is selected for a fixed route, the starting and ending depots are assigned and taken. In some scenarios, the starting and/or ending depots may need to be changed.

To change the starting and ending depots:

Right-click on the desired route on the Fixed Route tab.
To change the starting depot, select Edit Routes > Change Starting Depot from the right-click menu.
Select the starting depot from the dropdown list.
Click Change Start Depot.
To change the ending depot, select Edit Routes > Change Ending Depot from the right-click menu.
Select the ending depot from the dropdown list.
Click the Change End Depot button.

Once the fixed routes have been created and configured, select the Home icon to exit the Fixed Route Planning page.

Applying Fixed Routes in Map View

Each customer's routes and route position are saved as part of the Fixed Route group. When the Fixed Routes are applied to a routing session, all the customers who are part of a fixed route will automatically be placed onto the designated routes in the configured sequence. All customers who have not been set up will remain unassigned.

To apply fixed routes in Map View:

From the Map View page in Dispatch mode, right-click anywhere on the map and click Apply Fixed Routes.
Select the desired Fixed Route Group from the dropdown list.
If routes exist already for the delivery date and cannot be replaced by the fixed routes, click the Keep Existing Routes checkbox.
If customers on the fixed routes do not have active orders for the delivery date, click the Create Orders From Fixed Routes checkbox. This option may not be visible depending on how your system is configured.
Click the Apply Fixed Route Group button.

Saving Fixed Routes from Map View

Routes created within the Map View page while in the Dispatch mode can be saved as/to a fixed route for another delivery date or to update an existing fixed route.

To save fixed routes in Map View:

Right-click on the desired route(s) from the Routes pane.
From the right-click menu, select Save As Fixed Route.
Enter the name of the fixed route to create a new fixed route group, or select one of the existing ones from the dropdown list to update and/or add.
If the fixed route you are saving already exists, and you want to overwrite (update) the existing route, click the Overwrite any existing fixed routes in the case of conflict checkbox.
Click the Confirm button.

Working with Fixed Routes